One of the leading causes of death on military battlegrounds and in hospital trauma units is severe blood loss and the associated shock that it produces. Therefore, one of the most vital priorities of caregivers (medics, first responders, and medical providers) is to control and stop bleeding. There are many devices and methods that may be employed to control bleeding. One of the most commonly used devices for bleeding control is the elastic bandage.
Elastic bandages have been known in the prior art for many years. These bandages are sometimes called “roller” bandages or “wraps” and come in rolls having various fasteners, such as Velcro®, metal clips, or tape. They are sold under brand names such as ACE® wrap.
Elastic bandages are a preferred wound dressing by caregivers ranging from physicians and trained medics to individual first responders with minimal first aid training. Elastics bandages are highly adaptable to treat a range of wounds and conform to virtually any body part. Elastic bandages provide many benefits at the wound site, including applying varying degrees of compression and support to the wound, as well as providing a sterile barrier around the wound. Compression and support is effective in controlling bleeding, and reducing pain and swelling in the area around the wound. The sterile barrier reduces the risk of contamination and infection of the wound.
Elastic bandages are also effective in applying and securing other treatment medicaments and materials to the wound site. One material that is often used in wound dressing and treatment is a woven fabric or gauze. Gauze is effective in controlling bleeding and can be placed directly on the wound to provide focused treatment at the wound site. Gauze is also used as a sterile material to remove foreign matter from the wound site.
Many currently available bandages act to cover the wound site. Their main function is to keep the wound site clean, not to control hemorrhage. In order to control hemorrhage, another material, such as gauze, must be used at the wound site. The gauze can then be covered and wrapped by the bandage. These bandages require the introduction and use of other materials to properly treat a wound.
There are presently available hemostatic dressings that are designed to promote the accelerated clotting of blood at wounds. Examples of these dressing are the HemCon® bandage (HemCon Inc., Tigard, Oreg., U.S.A) and QuickClot® (Z-Medica Corporation, Wallingford, Conn., U.S.A.). While these products generally promote clotting, they still require the application of direct pressure to the wound site in order to be effective.
While the above described wound treatments are suitable, the handling and use of the various separate components can be cumbersome and time consuming which increases the risk of blood loss and associated complications. Also, the introduction of multiple components to the wound site increases the risk of contamination and infection. Notwithstanding the usefulness of the above-described treatments, a need still exists for a fully integrated wound treatment system and method for treating wounds quickly and effectively while reducing the risk of contamination and infection.